Advent calendars are a fun way to count down the days to Christmas. We’ve rounded up some of the best chocolate, beauty and toy advent calendars to help you get into the festive spirit and hunted down where or how you can buy them cheapest. Spoil the kids (and yourself) with a chocolate treat in the run up to Christmas. There are plenty chocolate advent calendars to choose from, but here are some of our top picks. Cadbury Milk Chocolate Advent Calendar If nothing but Cadbury chocolate will do in your household go for the Cadbury Dairy Milk Chocolate Advent Calendar (90g). There are 24 milk chocolate pieces which are suitable for vegetarians. We found it cheapest at Waitrose where you can get your hands on one for £2.19. Galaxy Milk Chocolate Advent Calendar If you prefer the smooth taste of Galaxy chocolate indulge in the Galaxy Milk Chocolate Advent Calendar (110g). There’s a delicious treat behind every window with an extra special Galaxy ripple chocolate bar for Christmas Eve, which are all suitable for vegetarians.
You can pick one up for £1.99 at your local B&M Store. Hotel Chocolate Advent Calendar for Two The Hotel Chocolat Advent Calendar for Two (300g) has two baby truffles behind each window which you can share with someone special as you count down the days to Christmas. Flavours include salted caramel cream, gingerbread praline, Madagascan vanilla and raspberry rush which are all suitable for vegetarians. This calendar will set you back £26 but you can save by shopping online with TopCashback, which is offering 12% cashback on Hotel Chocolat purchases until December 4. Lindt Teddy Bear Advent House Calendar Enjoy a chunk of luxury chocolate each day in the lead up to Christmas with the Lindt Teddy Bear Advent House Calendar (250g). It comes with three bears, three gold reindeers, six Lindor mini truffles, six snowballs and five Christmas napolitans plus there’s a full size bar waiting behind door 24 - all suitable for vegetarians. You can pick up this festive calendar for £12.99 from Selfridges.
There are only a few left so snap one up now! If you prefer the taste of Maltesers the Merryteaser Advent Calendar is for you. The calendar contains 24 milk chocolate miniature reindeer to enjoy which are suitable for vegetarians. You can pick one up half price in-store at B&M for £1.99. Check your nearest store for availability. For an extra special treat each day in the run up to Christmas try the Thorntons Continental Advent Calendar (278g). It comes with 24 tasty surprises from the Thorntons Continental collection including vanilla truffle, alpini praline, salted caramel praline and Sicilian lemon, which are all suitable for vegetarians. The Thorntons Continental Advent Calendar will set you back £12.50 direct from Thorntons and if you are after a few calendars its part of the three for two savings deal. For extra savings you can shop through TopCashback, which is offering 10.4% cashback on full-price Thorntons products. Alternatively, you can pick up the same Thorntons Continental Advent Calendar at Tesco for £7 – saving you £5.50!
Earn cashback as you spend with these top credit cards If you want to keep the sugar to a minimum a toy advent calendar is a great alternative to count down to Christmas. These are our top picks. LEGO Star Wars Advent Calendar Transport your kids to a galaxy far far away with the LEGO Star Wars Advent Calendar. Behind each door is a LEGO Star Wars themed toy including vehicles, starships and characters from the film. The set comes with eight minifigures and is suitable for kids aged between 6-14. The LEGO Star Wars Advent Calendar is selling fast - it's still available on Amazon starting at £27.65. LEGO City and LEGO Friends advent calendars If your kids aren’t really Star Wars fans, then you could go for the LEGO City or LEGO Friends advent calendars instead. Each of the sets come with 24 different themed buildable gifts, suitable for children aged 5-12 and normally retail for £19.99. However, you can pick up the LEGO Friends Advent Calendar from just £18.26 at Amazon, while the LEGO City Advent Calendar is available for £26.80, also from Amazon.
Wherever you get yours from remember if you’re shopping online to check for if you can earn cashback with Quidco or TopCashback. Get creative in December with the Play-Doh Advent Calendar. It comes with five Play-Doh pots and each door holds a shape cutter or tool. The item is suitable for ages 3-8. You can pick one up for £9.99 at Argos and Amazon and £10.49 at John Lewis. Check if you can earn cashback with Quidco or TopCashback if shopping online. A beauty advent calendar is a great way to get a bargain. They’re packed with products that can add up to be worth more than you would pay for them separately. Here are our top picks. NYX's offering contains 12 mini soft matte lip creams and 12 eye shadows based on a host of destinations from around the globe. You can pick one up at Boots or Very for £60. Makeup Revolution Beauty Advent Calendar The Makeup Revolution Beauty Advent Calendar is filled with 25 beauty products to help you count down 'til Christmas.
Goodies include lipsticks, lipglosses, brushes and an eyeshadow palette on the big day. Pick yours up from Superdrug for £30 (RRP £40). Sainsbury’s Nectar Double Up points boost event launches Amazon Black Friday UK: best deals and discounts 2016 Christmas cashback: 7 ways to earn money on gifts, food and decorations Shop for the consoles, games, and accessories of your choice directly on these recommended retailer websites. You can also visit their site to find a store near you! Shop for the consoles, games, and accessories of your choice directly from these recommended stores.Yard sales and thrift stores can be very hit-and-miss. When you find them you can get great bargains, but most of the time it’s not fruitful unless you have other reasons to shop there. When I built my Pokemon sculptures, I was able to do that using a bulk brick tub that lego was selling at the time (set #3033). I bought about 20 of those at $20 each and still ran out of certain parts – that’s why Squirtle’s tail was so small.
Sadly, that tub was discontinued a few years ago and the bulk tubs that are available more recently haven’t had nearly as good of an assortment or as good of a price per brick. Probably the easiest way to get cheap parts is to shop on BrickLink. It’s an online shopping mall just for LEGO. Sellers buy sets in bulk (generally when they have clearance sales at retail stores) and sort the parts, putting the individual pieces on their stores. Then you can go in and order any part in quantity. It’s an awkward site to use, but I think the best way is to start at the Catalog tab, find the part you want in the color you want, and then find a store that has them in sufficient quantity. (Disclaimer: I have my own BrickLink store.) There’s also bulk brick available from LEGO; usually they’re a lot more expensive that way but once in a while you can find some real bargains. Look for the “Pick-A-Brick” in the LEGO Shop-At-Home Store and if you have a LEGO store in your nearby mall, they have an in-person pick-a-brick wall where you can fill up a plastic cup with LEGO parts for a set price.